50 Best New Bands Of 2010

Now we’re over halfway through the year, we thought it was high time we looked back and rounded up the most exciting new acts to surface in 2010.

Here, then, are the 50 bands who’ve blown our minds over the past few months. Do you agree with our choices? Let us know who we’ve overlooked over on the Radar blog. You can also listen to every band on the list via our Soundcloud player.

Oh, and if you’re in a new band yourself, make sure you sign up to NME Breakthrough – it’s a great way of sharing your music with others and, just maybe, earning a write-up in the pages of NME.

50 Everything Everything

From: Manchester.

NME said: “Responsible for the most idea-packed British debut of the year.”

48 Clare Maguire

From: Birmingham.

NME said: “She might be about as schmindie as a WOMAD knitting circle, but she’s punk at heart and her voice is a siren call loud enough to lure the hardiest Factory Floor fan on to pop’s craggiest rocks.”

44 War Paint

From: Los Angeles.

NME said: “They consolidated their bonds via ritualistic slumber parties, gorging on a diet of early Cocteau Twins dream-pop, the muddy bass twang of grunge and sassy R&B in order to write songs about toying with your heart.”

43 Gayngs

From: Minneapolis, United States.

NME said: “Antique keyboards pulse, fretless basses thrum and a variety of voices echo in and out, underlying the trippy feel and making this pretty much the most scintillating and daring record of the year so far. Buy it. Play it. Get beaten up for being different.”

24 Pure Ecstasy

23 Foster The People

From: Los Angeles.

NME said: “Blessed with a knack for melody, boogie-time beats, and an ornate electronic detail, Foster The People craft a sound ideal for a fantasy backyard barbecue with The Strokes, Vampire weekend, MGMT, and Daft Punk as guests.”

Essential Track: ‘Pumped Up Kicks’.

22 Cerebral Ballzy

From: Brooklyn, New York.

NME said: “Their name might make you roll your eyes, but Cerebral Ballzy are New York’s best new hardcore punk band.”